Consumer Actions and Attitudes Regarding Initiatives Directed towards Sustainability: Assessing Gender and Generational Gaps

Abstract

A demographically and geographically representative sample of 1,243 adult residents of the United States provided input regarding 33 issues germane to both green marketing and green consumption. This diverse array of behaviors and opinions addressed both sides of the buyer-seller dyad. From the buyers’ perspective, respondents reported a high propensity to engage in recycling, donate used goods, and purchase products with a longer life expectancy. As for organizational actions, the respondents favored environmentally-friendly actions such as focusing on cleaner and more efficient energy alternatives. There was a strong belief that individuals can make a difference. Comparisons on the bases of gender and generational cohort membership documented significant differences for a number of the 33 issues under scrutiny. Gender produced statistically significant differences between men and women for two of the 11 personal green consumption behaviors. Women were more inclined to purchase second hand items, and from a similar perspective, they were more prone to donate items with a remaining useful life rather than simply discard them in the trash. Regarding the subset of 22 issues related to their attitudes regarding the green issues germane to consumers and marketers, significant differences between the two sexes were in evidence for 15 of the 22 issues. An investigation focusing on generational membership documented 13 issues where there was a significant difference across the five groups. A proposed typology allowed respondents to place themselves in the category that they deemed to best fit themselves. Fully 65.1 percent of the respondents placed themselves in the centrist category – eco-aware. Only 2.0 percent deemed themselves to be eco-destroyers while 9.2 percent, a metric that environmentalists might find somewhat disappointing, placed themselves at the other end of the spectrum – as eco-warriors

    Similar works